The biggest change to our running back rankings comes right at the top: There's no Saquon Barkley. He sustained a high-ankle sprain in Week 3 and almost surely won't be ready to go in Week 4. Fantasy football owners who drafted Barkley with one of the top two or three picks in their drafts might be scrambling to try and find a replacement on the waiver wire, be that handcuff Wayne Gallman or someone else. Chances are, the sleeper you need to make up for Barkley's absence might already be on your bench, a player you've never considered playing yet because you have Saquon, but now will be forced into using. Hopefully our Week 4 fantasy RB rankings help you uncover the hidden gem you have hiding on your own roster.
One player who isn't a sleeper anymore is Austin Ekeler. He's just a full-blown fantasy stud who picks up points on the ground and in the receiving game. Ekeler gets the mouthwatering matchup with Miami in Week 4. The Dolphins allowed 100-yard games to both Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard in Week 3, so there should be plenty of yardage to go around for the Chargers -- enough to make Justin Jackson an interesting deep-league play, especially with bye weeks here.
WEEK 4 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Week 4 features just two teams on byes: Jets and 49ers. At the running back spot, the Jets' bye is a big one because it means an owner is without Le'Veon Bell this week. There will also be owners dealing with the absence of Matt Breida, Raheem Mostert or even Jeff Wilson, Jr., but they might just be glad to get that headache off their plate for a week.
WEEK 4 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
Further down the rankings, we see Devonta Freeman (vs. Titans) make an appearance as an RB2. Once Ito Smith left Sunday with a concussion, Freeman received all the RB carries and only ceded one total touch to another back. Seattle's Chris Carson (@ Cardinals) has tumbled in this week's rankings despite a good matchup with the Cardinals because Carson has lost a fumble in all three games so far this season. If Rashaad Penny is healthy enough to play, expect Carson to lose out on some touches.
In Philly, we saw a near-breakout game for Miles Sanders in Week 3, as he averaged 4.1 yards on 13 carries and picked up 73 yards on two big plays in the passing game. He's a rookie back on the rise. In Chicago, David Montgomery finally looks like he's won Matt Nagy's trust and should be a fantasy starter on most rosters in Week 4.
WEEK 4 DFS LINEUPS:
DK cash | DK GPP | FD cash | FD GPP | Y! cash | Y! GPP
Finally, there's a very interesting matchup clash in Week 4: Dalvin Cook against the imposing Bears defense. Cook has rushed for more than 100 yards in all three Vikings games, carrying the ball at least 16 times each time out. The Minnesota offense goes through Cook. Even with that matchup, you've gotta keep Cook in your lineup this week because he'll still get the volume even if the efficiency drops slightly. Besides, all it takes is one, like the 75-yard touchdown Cook ran for in Week 2.
WEEK 4: Waiver pickups | FAAB planner | Trade values | Snap counts
Reminder: These rankings will be adjusted throughout week, so check back often for the latest updates and analysis!
MORE WEEK 4 DFS: Top values | Stacks | Lineup Builder
Week 4 Fantasy RB Rankings
These rankings are for standard, non-PPR leagues.
| 1 | Christian McCaffrey, CAR @ HOU. |
| 2 | Ezekiel Elliott, DAL @ NO. |
| 3 | Austin Ekeler, LAC @ MIA. To the shock of no one, Miami allows the most fantasy points to running backs. In Week 3, two Cowboys running backs reached 100 yards on the ground against the Dolphins. Ekeler's floor-ceiling combination in this game is as good as any back for Week 4. |
| 4 | Alvin Kamara, NO vs. DAL. |
| 5 | James Conner, PIT vs. CIN. The Bengals have been burned on the ground all season long, so even though Conner has been poor this season, this Monday Night Football matchup shapes up as a prime game for him to break out and return to his 2018 form. Cincinnati's allowed 5.2 yards per carry to running backs in 2019, so at Conner's usual workload, his yardage alone provides a high floor in Week 4. |
| 6 | Mark Ingram, BAL vs. CLE. |
| 7 | Marlon Mack, IND vs. OAK. The Raiders haven't stopped much of anything from offenses the past two weeks, so this game shapes up as one that Indianapolis gets an early lead and uses Mack to control the game in the second half. It doesn't hurt that Mack's averaging a career-best 4.9 yards per carry so far in 2019. |
| 8 | Josh Jacobs, OAK @ IND. |
| 9 | Derrick Henry, TEN @ ATL. |
| 10 | Nick Chubb, CLE @ BAL. The Ravens have been good at stopping the run this season, but Chubb has proven to be Cleveland's most consistent offense in the early going. In an important divisional matchup for the Browns, expect them to lean on Chubb early and often as Baker Mayfield continues to work through his early-season struggles. |
| 11 | Kerryon Johnson, DET vs. KC. |
| 12 | Joe Mixon, CIN @ PIT. This will be a friendly game to running backs, as Pittsburgh's also struggled to limit running back fantasy points. The Steelers have been especially burned by backs catching passes, which Mixon is good at, so he's in line for a solid Monday night. |
| 13 | David Johnson, ARZ vs. SEA. |
| 14 | Phillip Lindsay, DEN vs. JAX. Lindsay's biggest concern in a time share with Royce Freeman might've been expected to be goal-line work, as Freeman is the more physically imposing back. No worries there anymore, though, as Lindsay scored two goal-line touchdowns for Denver in Week 3. While Freeman has played a solid role, too, Lindsay is still the preferred option in the Denver backfield. |
| 15 | Dalvin Cook, MIN @ CHI. You can't really sit Cook this week. He's received at least 16 carries and topped 100 yards in each of the season's first three weeks. Minnesota won't abandon the running game, so Cook should get a similar carry total. Even if it's more like 20 carries for 80 yards, all it takes is one score to make it a solid fantasy day. |
| 16 | Todd Gurley, LAR vs. TB. |
| 17 | Leonard Fournette, JAX @ DEN. Maybe the nature of Fournette's Week 3 concerned you: Negative yardage until he broke a late run to get him over 60 yards for the night. Denver's allowed a league-worst five rushing TDs to running backs in 2019, though. Fournette should be licking his chops when the Jags get down near the goal line, and his added work in the receiving game gives him a slightly higher floor, especially in PPR leagues. |
| 18 | Aaron Jones, GB vs. PHI. |
| 19 | David Montgomery, CHI vs. MIN. |
| 20 | Devonta Freeman, ATL vs. TEN. Ito Smith looks iffy due to a concussion, and if Smith misses out, Freeman should get 90-plus percent of the Falcons' backfield touches. After a week in which Freeman finally looked more like himself, his high Week 4 usage makes him a good RB2. |
| 21 | Sony Michel, NE @ BUF. |
| 22 | LeSean McCoy, KC @ DET. McCoy aggravated the ankle injury he dealt with last week late in Sunday's game. Detroit is a fantasy-friendly matchup for running backs, so keep an eye on this one: If McCoy plays, you'll want him in your lineup. |
| 23 | Adrian Peterson,WAS @ NYG. |
| 24 | Chris Carson, SEA @ ARZ. Carson has lost a fumble in all three games this season. If Rashaad Penny (hamstring) is healthy in time for Sunday's game, Carson becomes a risky play even in a good matchup because he's very close to being in Pete Carroll's doghouse regardless of how many "votes of confidence" he gets. |
| 25 | Royce Freeman, DEN vs. JAX |
| 26 | Miles Sanders, PHI @ GB. Sanders had a mini breakout in Week 3, leading Eagles backs in rushing and receiving yards. A matchup with a Packers run defense that's allowed 5.0 yards per carry to backs might be just what the rookie from Penn State needs to have his full breakout. |
| 27 | Wayne Gallman, NYG vs. WAS. Gallman will fill in for Saquon Barkley (ankle) as long as the superstar is out, and he gets a friendly first matchup against the Redskins. Gallman has averaged 4.2 yards per carry in the six NFL games he has of at least 10 carries, so if the Giants trust him with 15 or so totes, he could put together a decent ballgame. He's only shown himself as a solid pass-catcher out of the backfield in limited opportunities. |
| 28 | Rashaad Penny, SEA @ ARZ |
| 29 | Justin Jackson, LAC @ MIA. Tony Pollard turned garbage-time action into more than 100 rushing yards against the Dolphins last week. Jackson could do the same this week, and he's generally more involved than Pollard relative to their respective starters. Jackson fits the bill as a bye-week fill-in with his best matchup of the season. |
| 30 | Carlos Hyde, HOU vs. CAR |
| 31 | Devin Singletary, BUF vs. NE. |
| 32 | Peyton Barber, TB @ LAR |
| 33 | James White, NE @ BUF. The Bills have limited receiving for running backs so far this season, but they have allowed two touchdown receptions by backs. In standard leagues, White owners will need him to find paydirt to make starting him worthwhile, but at least it looks like there's a chance of that in this matchup. |
| 34 | Damien Williams, KC @ DET. |
| 35 | Jordan Howard, PHI @ GB |
| 36 | Ronald Jones, TB @ LAR. Jones finished Week 3 with a late surge to outcarry Peyton Barber, 14-13 and outgain him on the ground, 80-48. This remains a guessing-game committee, and the Rams are a tough matchup. It's hard to trust either Tampa Bay option this week as anything more than a FLEX flier. |
| 37 | Jamaal Williams, GB vs. PHI. |
| 38 | Chris Thompson, WAS @ NYG. |
| 39 | Tarik Cohen, CHI vs. MIN |
| 40 | Kenyan Drake, MIA vs. LAC. Game flow hasn't even helped Drake in the early going as Miami's preferred receiving back, as neither Ryan Fitzpatrick nor Josh Rosen check down enough to let Drake compile fantasy points through the air. Maybe Drake really will get traded soon. It could only help his value. |
| 41 | Frank Gore, BUF vs. NE |
| 42 | Duke Johnson Jr., HOU vs. CAR |
| 43 | Nyheim Hines, IND vs. OAK |
| 44 | Dion Lewis, TEN @ ATL |
| 45 | Rex Burkhead, NE @ BUF. |
| 46 | Darrel Williams, KC @ DET. Williams ended up leading the Chiefs backfield in snaps and yardage in Week 3 with Damien Williams out and LeSean McCoy exiting early with injury. We're assuming at least one of those backs will play in Week 4. If neither does, Darrel Williams would be a top-25 RB option against the Lions. |
| 47 | Latavius Murray, NO vs. DAL |
| 48 | Ito Smith, ATL vs. TEN |
| 49 | Gus Edwards, BAL vs. CLE |
| 50 | Malcolm Brown, LAR vs. TB. |
| 51 | Alexander Mattison, MIN @ CHI |
| 52 | Kalen Ballage, MIA vs. LAC |
| 53 | Tony Pollard, DAL @ NO. |
| 54 | DeAndre Washington, OAK @ IND. |
| 55 | Giovani Bernard, CIN @ PIT |
| 56 | C.J. Prosise, SEA @ ARZ. |